Disaster Recovery: SRM / vSphere Replication → VCF Protection and Recovery

A companion to the Overview. If Site Recovery Manager (SRM) / vSphere Replication is present, plan this as its own workstream before the core upgrade – the current DR release is not supported on the upgraded vCenter, so any order that upgrades vCenter first leaves the environment unprotected.

For a two-site (protected + recovery) estate, both sites’ DR components move in step – do not upgrade one site’s vCenter while the other site is still on the old DR release.

Target: VCF Protection and Recovery

From 9.1.0.0 the recovery manager, vSphere Replication, and vSAN replication ship as a single combined appliance. SRM is renamed VMware Live Site Recovery (VLSR).

Convergence

“Convergence” is the Broadcom path for VLSR 9.0.2.3 and earlier onto the combined appliance. The Converge workflow requires the source to be at 9.0.2.2 or later (Broadcom KB 408127) – a site on an earlier 9.0.2.x needs an interim patch first. Versions 9.0.3 and later use a normal in-place update instead.

Bridge version – why DR goes first

Protection and Recovery 9.1.0.02xx is supported on vCenter and ESX at 8.0 U3, 9.0, and 9.1 (not 8.0 U2 or earlier). It runs on the pre-upgrade vCenter and the upgraded vCenter, so converging DR to it before the core upgrade keeps protection continuous. Confirm the exact supported set in the interoperability matrix for your build – VCF 9.1.1 (GA 2026-09-03) ships its own Protection and Recovery build with its own qualified vCenter / ESX set.

Enhanced vSphere Replication is a prerequisite

For VCF 9 it is the only supported site-to-site configuration; the appliance will not install against a site still on legacy replication (unsupported past vSphere Replication 9.0.2.2). Per site, ahead of the convergence:

1. Permit outbound TCP 32032 on every ESX host carrying replicated datastore traffic.
2. Define Enhanced Replication Mappings in the Site Recovery interface, per protected site pair.
3. Convert every legacy VM replication to Enhanced settings – per VM, via the Site Recovery UI or the REST API (Broadcom ships a Python sample for large estates).

Convergence procedure

Per site; run on the protected site first, then the recovery site.

1. Pre-work. Full backup of the Protection and Recovery database; configuration export via the Import/Export tools; record Site Pair advanced settings; all recovery plans Ready, all protection groups and VMs OK; custom certificates on SHA1 / SHA256 thumbprints (no MD5); have vCenter SSO admin credentials for both sites.
2. Deploy the Protection and Recovery 9.1 appliance on both vCenter sites; enable SSH on all legacy appliances; ensure the new appliance can reach them.
3. In the Protection and Recovery Appliance Management Interface → Converge Legacy Appliances → enter the vCenter and legacy-appliance credentials → select the services → run the configuration wizard.
4. Repeat on the recovery site.
5. After. The legacy appliances power off and their IPs / FQDNs move to the single appliance; clean up firewall rules and DNS; reinstall storage replication adapters (SRA) and re-register any VASA provider; re-verify the site pairing.

What convergence preserves

Advanced settings, datastore groups, protection groups, inventory mappings, recovery plans, per-VM IP customizations, custom roles and permissions, custom alarms, test-plan history, and certificates – for objects in a valid state only.

Licensing

VMware Live Site Recovery (VLSR) / vSphere Replication / vSAN Data Protection is licensed separately from core VCF/VVF:

• Advanced Cyber Compliance (ACC) – a paid VCF Advanced Service that covers the full VLSR + vSphere Replication + vSAN Data Protection bundle for VCF environments.
• Standalone Site Recovery Manager license – for customers who want DR without the cyber-recovery add-on capabilities; available for VCF, VVF, or pre-9 vSphere.

Ask who is driving the DR spend before assuming ACC is in scope – it is a commercial decision, not a technical default.

Capacity is per protected VM, on both sites. The same license number is required on both ends of the pair: one-way protection of 100 VMs needs a 100-VM license installed on both vCenter A and vCenter B; bidirectional protection of 100 VMs each way needs a 200-VM license on both sides.

Where it’s applied. Not entered into the Protection and Recovery appliance directly – it rides the same mechanism as the rest of VCF 9.1 licensing. Register VCF Operations and a License Server with the VCF Business Services Console, then add the ACC (or standalone SRM) subscription capacity to that License Server and assign it from there. This is the same License Server deployed in the Overview’s Phase 3 – DR licensing is not a separate appliance.

Legacy license conversion is automatic. An existing perpetual / legacy SRM license key converts on activation – no manual re-entry: “When you activate VMware Live Site Recovery your existing Site Recovery Manager license is converted to VMware Live Site Recovery license. You are no longer required to provide Site Recovery Manager license key.” A customer already on a legacy SRM subscription can keep running it until the term ends and only needs to purchase ACC (or the standalone SRM SKU) at renewal, or sooner if they want the newer cyber-recovery capabilities before then.

Post-core check

After the core upgrade, re-test a recovery plan against the converged Protection and Recovery appliance (see Overview → Post-upgrade validation).

Open items to confirm

• The exact supported vCenter / ESX set for the target Protection and Recovery build, from the interoperability matrix.
• Whether the running DR pair is at or above the 9.0.2.2 Converge floor (map builds via KB 313905); if not, plan the interim patch.
• The DR monitoring integration inside VCF Operations (VLSR dashboards / alerts) is only supported once VCF Operations is on 9.x – expect a gap between the DR convergence and the VCF Operations upgrade. DR protection itself is unaffected.
• When in the convergence procedure the ACC / SRM license must be assigned (before deploying the 9.1 appliance vs. after) – no authoritative source found yet; confirm against the account’s actual SPD / entitlement before this goes into a customer runbook. See Licensing.

Sources